The Urban Permaculture Farm Magazine
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Throwing Biotech Lies at Tomatoes - Part 1: Killer Tomatoes
Remember the pictures of the fish tomatoes? For years they were an unofficial emblem of the anti-GMO movement. They depicted how anti-freeze genes from an Arctic fish were forced into tomato DNA, allowing the plants to survive frost. Scientists really did create those Frankentomatoes, but they were never put on the market. (Breyers low-fat ice cream, however, does contain anti-freeze proteins from Arctic fish genes, but that’s another story.)
The tomato that did make it to market was called the Flavr Savr, engineered for longer shelf life. Fortunately, it was removed from the shelves soon after it was introduced.
Live a Greener Life
Start composting.
Waste is just energy misplaced. Keep your kitchen scraps out of your garbage can by starting your own worm bin. Worm bin you say? Why yes. Everyone has a plastic storage bin so purge your self of some clutter and transform it into a worm breeding factory. Put 1/4inch holes on the bottom of the bin and along the lip to allow for airflow. Place it in a pantry or closet in a convenient place for you to access every time you cook.
Why yes. Everyone has a plastic storage bin so purge your self of some clutter and transform it into a worm breeding factory. Put 1/4 inch holes on the bottom of the bin and along the lip to allow for airflow. Line the bottom with cardboard and fill with a thick layer of shredded newspaper and moisten with water, 1 quart of soil to help the composting process, and one pound of red wiggler worms. Place the bin in a dark area like a pantry or closet in a convenient place for you to access every time you cook. Place kitchen scraps daily. A powerful worm bin can digest its own weight in worms, in ideal conditions, every two days! The more worms, the more it can consume and turn into potent worm castings that you can use on container plants.
Gardening with Kids
Indeed, this type of energy is the type of energy we want our children to have instead of caffeine- or sugar-generated. It is longer lasting, healthier, and stimulates lasting memories. Bottom line; gardening and being outdoors in nature is fun and makes kids and adults alike feel happy. Testimony to this claim is the sunflower garden adventure my youngest daughter and I had together. One afternoon I dumped a handful of sunflower seeds in my hand and said, "Will you look at that!"
"What?" said my youngest, leaning low to my hand so she could get a close-up view of the seeds.
"That!" I smile, "This is a sunflower!"
A Fresh Start for the New Year
It seems natural to use the turning of the year to take stock of life - to consider what could be different in the coming year. Many of us make resolutions that focus on something that is "wrong" with us. This resolution-making is also loaded with guilt, because if you don't achieve what you set out to do, you can feel a sense of failure. As we sit at this transitional point, I want to offer you a different approach to making your resolutions.
It seems natural to use the turning of the year to take stock of life - to consider what could be different in the coming year. Many of us make resolutions that focus on something that is "wrong" with us.
Green People Video
Staying Balanced Through The Holidays
The holidays are coming! There are usually lots of opportunities to gather, see friends and family, eat great food, and generally celebrate. However, the holidays can also bring on added stress and grief if we lose sight of our goals and get swept up in the many demands that come our way. Navigating through this season can be tough. Here are some steps to help you maintain a sense of balance and hopefully have more space for delight and joy.
Food
This is a season for eating. There are special meals, extravagant desserts, and lots of snack foods to enjoy. The downside is that it is not uncommon for people to gain 5 or even 10 pounds during the holidays.
What I Didn't Learn in Medical School, Part 1
You read the Garden Girl e-zine for ideas about how to live more healthfully in your urban environment. Likewise, you probably go to your doctor for guidance with your health.
Does your doctor help you improve your health, or only have time to focus on disease? Is the US medical system a "health care system" or a "disease care system"?
Before reading further, close your eyes and ask yourself this question: "What is health?" Then go to the message board of the Garden Girl e-zine and share your definition of health with the other readers.
Now write another message on the board, answering this question: "What advice has my doctor given me recently that has helped me be healthy?"
On my first day at Boston University School of Medicine in 1982, the Dean told our nervous audience of 168 students, "in the next four years, you are going to learn 10,000 new words. You each have a good memory, or else you would not be here. Your memory will be stretched to the maximum here."
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An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.
Sustainability, in a broad sense, is the capacity to endure. In ecology, the word describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time. For humans it is the potential for long-term maintenance of wellbeing, which in turn depends on the wellbeing of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources.